Explosive carrier sensitive to airplane induced aerial disturbances



Patented June 5, 1945 EXl-LOSIVE CARRIER SENSITIVE TO AIR,- PLANE INDUCED AERIAL DISTURBANCES y George F. Archer, New York, N. Y.

Application December 15, 1941, Serial No. 423,081' v 6 Claims. (Cl. 102-56) This invention relates to anti-aircraft shells and other explosive-carriers and myA improvements are directed to means enabling such shells and carriers to explode under and through the influence of abnormal atmospheric conditions such as are created within a limited surrounding area by an airplane in flight.

. Bombing aircraft When at high altitudes present targets upon which direct hits are not easily made from the surface and the purpose of my invention is to provide means whereby a shell or the like containing a high explosive, such for example as TNT, may be caused to explode when in an area or zone occupied by the aircraft, the proximity of the explosion entailing destruction of the aircraft.

'I'he aerial disturbances which I` refer to as abnormal atmospheric conditions,- are those created by an airplane, or the like, in flight. .The propeller slip streams and the wake following the airplane constitute actuating air pressure impulses relied upon by me for co-action-with responsive instrumentalities upon the shell or carrier for the discharge of its explosive.

While without denite knowledge as to the extent of the area, surrounding an airplanein flight,

, which crcumscribes the disturbed aerial condition, it at any rate considerably enlarges the target zone in which a discharged high explosive will prove effective, and that is the main object f thev present invention.

Other features and advantages of my invention will hereinafter appear.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is an elevation in section of the preferred form of my invention. f

Fig. 2 is a section taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an elevation in section o-f another form of my invention. Y

Fig. 4 is a section taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a detail view in elevation of a portion of the shell of Fig. 3 showing a duct outlet in the shell casing. y

In the following description the various forms of my invention will be referred to in conjunction with the particular views in the drawing identied therewith.

In the preferred embodiment of my invention which is disclosed in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing I providea shell which is sensitive to aerial disturbances created by an airplane in flight and which is designed to explode when within a zone in which the air is so disturbed without the ne; cessity of actual contact with a relatively solid body.

The shell disclosed in Fig. 1 of the drawing' comprises three main sections which are normallyy spaced apart. Such sections consist of the usuali war head 13, the'central section orv shell proper, 14 and the base section l5. A shaft 'I6 extends centrally through the shell and is rigidly con-y neoted tothe war head and the base section ,to thereby connect these sections together against rotation or axial displacement relative toY thel shaft, the central section or shell proper 74 being, loosely journaled on the shaft for rotation` and limited axial 'displacement thereon by means of. the bearings 11 and 18. The central section being normally spaced from thebase section by means of a recoil spring 19 mounted between said sections and coiled yabout theshaft 16. Itwill beV understood that the recoil spring providesk a cushioning means between the two sections to take, f care of the sudden upward pushwhich'occurs when the shell is red.

The war headpl3 isprovided with the usual firing pin 73' kand cap 13" and TNT so that the, shell will explode in the usual manner if itcon'- tacts an object.

The central section or shell proper vI4 constitutes a housing for the operating elements of my shellwhich elements are sensitive to the fugitive air waves or air pressures created by anfairplanev or the like in flight for actuation to close an electric circuit whereby the shell is exploded, even though no object is actually contacted. When a shell is fired from a gun. the rifling yin the gun barrel causes theshell to spin in its flight through the air. IAhave provided means mounted within the central section adapted to swing outwardly therefrom for preventing or substantiallyl retard` ing the spinning of the central section, whilethe war head and the base section may continue their rapid synchronous spinning. This spinningrro'f5 the war head and base section while the spinf. ning of the central `section is stopped is theres, sult of the particular mounting of the three slections on the shaft 16, and prevents the shell from tumbling in its aerial flight even though the spingun barrel the wings will fly out through the slots 83 to extend outside of the central section of within the scope of my invention to utilize eitherA Y nular slot would serve the purpose.

a greater or a lesser number of wings.

An inertia or circular cage member isrotatably journaled on shaft 'I6 within the.' Centralsection 14 by means of bearings 85 and 35. The cage member is formed to provide an open frameworkfor the relatively free passage .of air there?. through. Disposed within and concentric to the cage 84 are two circular disks 81 and 88 whichy are rotatably. iournaled Aon the shaft 16 by means.. of bearings 8.9 uand 90., the disksbeing spaced apart axially of the shaft and .connected tcgetherfor synchronous rotation by means. of. venes 9| vwhich are mounted on. the .disks and extend therebetween. l preferably use four of such varies,V which are. oppositely disposed vhairs.. The disks with. the venes mounted there?` on comprise in. its entirety .what -I ,shall term aV rotor and issubstantially light in Weight as cornpared tothe inertia or cage member, which is. a relatively heavy member to provide. the. required inertia. v

Mounted on Vthe disk `8l` of. therotor and nrolooting .downwardly therefrom is aneleotric con.

tact 92. and another` electric contact .93 projects.

upwardly fromthe cage '84.. the two/contacts.

being so arranged that upon. rotation of the rotor the two contacts will engage, and being further so arranged that the .oQntaQtS alle llormally held out of engagement. For this purpose springs 94. are attached to both sides of one. of the vanes on the rotor and extend therefrom for attachment to the inertia member. The springs are suitably mounted for adjustment to vary the tension between therotor and the cage. Thus the rotor vand the inertia member are relatively rotatable against the tension exerted by the spring. When the rotor is rotated to engage the .contacts the. relatively heavy inertia member f will not giveor .rotate and a close contact Will be maintained..

As, will be hereinafter explained. it is.V necessary that .the rotor be stationary Vexcept under certain conditions as when a force is exerted thereon .to produce slight rotation `The springs 94 serve this purpose of normally preventing rotation of the. rotor. The .springs are attached.

to thecage member, which being relatively heavy operates as .an inertia member and normally will notrotate and .Will therefore serve 1in eifect as a means for normally preventing rotation of the rotor. When the necessary force is exerted on therotor .the spring tension Vwill be overcome and the rotor will rotate to make the electric` contact.

Ducts 95 having their outerencls` onen to the atmosphere through Aholes which are provided the central section, ext-end between the inertia member and the wall of the central section and.

are substantially tangentially disposed with respeot to the inertia member.

Two ,slip or contact rings .0B `and 91 of substantial length are spacedlymounted on the shaft 16 within the central `section and. are insulated 02 and 93 are thereby brought into engagement an electric circuit is closed through battery- |03` to brush holder |0| to brush 9S to slip ring 9"!4 from said shaft and from each other. Brushes 98 and 99 are supported by brush holders |00 and |0| in position in constant contact with the slip or contact rings. The brush holders extend from the central section into the base, section i6 in which they are mounted in any suitable manner. As the base section is relatively rotatable with respect to the central section, and if it is found desirable to use a bottom closure for the central section any suitable means may be provided in such closure for receiving therethrough the brush holders, for instance, an an Disposed within the base section are electric batteries |02- and |03 with which the brush holders are in electric contact, and the batteries are in electric contact with a coil |04 which is associated with -a tiring .cap |05 bymeans of which a true .course without .tumbling even though the` spinning of the central. section is prevented..A

The Coge, member Will. 1.1.0.1? rotate fille to its Weight .and resultant inertia eiiiect. and the rotor will therefore remain `stationary due to the teni' sion .spring by means of which it is anchored to the cage. Hence the operatingelemeots will re main stationary as the Shell travels .toward a zone of aerial -disturbance.

causing pressures therein vwhich will be directed move or rotate so as to 'bring the contacts 02 and 93 into engagement closing an electric oir-.fV4

cuit. is the cage is a relatively heavy member it will not give or rotate so tliat the contacts will be held together. When the rotor is rotated and the contacts to rotorVv contact `92 to contact 9 3 onV cage then to slip ring 96 then to brush-98 to brush 'holder |00 to battery |02 to coil |04 which `is excited to make a spark to re the cap |05 and thereby ex' plode the shell, even though the airplane or the like object has not been physically contacted.

` In the form of my invention disclosed in Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawing in which I use the same reference numerals as in Figs.- l and 2 to designateelements of the apparatus which are the same as those described 4with reference to Figs. l and 2,1 provide a shell in which I achieve the samelresults as those achieved by the shell of my preferred embodiment without using the outwardly swinging wings and with certain other structural changes. y

The shell of this form ofmy invention comprisestwo main sections |00V and |01 which are spaced apart upon a hollow shaft |08 lwhich ex` tends through the sections and is rigidly connected to lthe, base section |01.` The section |06 being loosely journaled on the shaft in the same: Way that the central section .in

n aled on the shaft.

A firing pin |09 is disposed externally of; the

shell and .is provided with. a. stem HB adapted to extend through the hollow shaft into thebasq When such a zone. is ehteredthe pressures or fugitive air waveswill flow into the tangentially disposed ducts.'

Fig.` 20v'is jour-l section for engagement with a cap when the ringpin |09 is depressed to thereby explode the 'INT housedA within the base section. The firing pin and cap being embodied in the shell for explosion thereof in the event an object is hit.

In order to prevent or substantially retard spinning of the section |06 which houses the operating elements and to stabilize the shell I provide a plurality of substantially longitudinally extending ducts I2 through the section |06 from the top or head portion thereof to a point adjacent the lower end thereof. I thus provide air inlets ||3 and outlets ||4 for the ducts. I form the outlets of generally V-shape so that the air emerges from the ducts in a thin vane at the lower part of the openings or outlets I4 as shown particularly in Fig. 5 of the drawing.

The operating elements whereby the shell is exploded when in a, zone of aerial disturbance are the same as those shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and described with reference thereto. The electric circuits, contacts and disposition of elements are the same and therefore will not be again described. l

When the shell of this form of my invention leaves the gun barrel the base section |01 will spin due to the rifling of the gun barrel but the section |06 being loosely journaled on the shaft will not spin due to the air pressures set up by the air rushing through the ducts i l2, thus the shell will be held to a straight course and spinning of the shell section housing the operating elements will be prevented. Theprevention of spinning of section |06 is accomplished by my particular structure of the air outlets ||4 which are so formed that the air will flow therefrom in thin jets which'will tend to hold against the surrounding air to act as a brake against spinning by the section |06 and by the downward push or pressures exerted by the air rushing through the ducts. Hence the entire assembly within the section |06 will not rotate or spin.

When the shell enters a zone of aerial disturbance pressures will be set up in the tangential ducts 95 to rotate the rotor to cose the circuit and explode the shell all in a manner the same as described with reference to Figs. l and 2 of the drawing.

It is also within the scope of my invention to dispose the ducts ||2 at various angles to the vertical plane of the shell than those shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing. For instance, I contemplate disposing such spinning preventing ducts diagonally to the vertical plane of the shell. By altering the "pitch of such ducts the spinning could be influenced to reverse the spin or the tendency to spin.

It is to be understood that any suitable means may be inserted in the electric circuit within the shell for regulating the altitude which must be reached before the shellmay be exploded.

Such means may comprise a barometric device taining said sections in spaced relation, means carried by one of said sections for preventing the rotation thereof during the flight of the shell K through the air, ducts disposed within said shell section, and means within said non-rotatable shell section disposed therein in the path of said ducts and movable on an axis parallel to the axis of the shell, such means being responsive to the inuence of fugitive airwaves for its movement, and means operable by said movable means, in its movement, to cause the explosion of the shell charge.

2. A shell, comprising spaced independently rotatable sections, means for mounting and retaining said sections in spaced relation, means carried by one of said sections for preventing the rotation thereof during the flight of the shell through the air, ducts disposed within said shell section, and movable means within the shell disposed therein in the path of said ducts and responsive to the influence of fugitive air waves for its movement, including a rotor having an electric contact thereon, and an inertiamembei` having an electric contact thereon, tension means connecting said rotor and said inertia member to hold said rotor in normal position separating said contacts, and a normally open electric circuit being closed upon engagement of said electric contacts by movement of said motor, to thereby cause the explosion of said shell charge. 3. A shell, comprising spaced rindependently rotatable sections, means for mounting and retaining said sections in spaced relation, means carried by one of said sections for preventing the rotation thereof during the flight of the shell through the air, including air ducts extending through said section having inletv openings in the head of said section and outlet openings inv the wall of said section adjacent the lower end thereof, and further ducts disposed within said shell section, and movable means within the shell disposed therein in the path of said further ducts and responsive to the influence of fugitive air Waves for its movement, and means operable' by said movable means, in its movement, to cause vexplosion of the shell charge.

4. A shell comprising spaced independently rotatable sections, means for mounting and retaining said sections in spaced relation, means carried by one of said sections for preventing the rotation thereof during flight of the shell through the air, means sensitive to fugitive air waves mounted in said non-rotatable section, and movable on an axis parallel to the axis of the shell, air ducts in said section open at one end to the atmosphere and adapted to receive therein fugitive air waves, and disposed in said shell section substantially tangentially tosaid movable means to direct said fugitive air waves against said movable means for movement thereof, and means operable by said movable means, in its movement, to cause the explosion of the shell charge.

5. A shell, comprising sections spacedly mounted on an axially disposed shaft, one of said secto the influence of fugitive airwaves for its movement, including a rotor journaled on said shait and having an electric contact thereon, ,and an I inertia member journaled on said shaft and having an electric contact thereon, tension means connecting said rotor and said inertia member to hold said rotor in normal position separating said contacts, and a normally open electric circuit being closed upon engagement of said electric contacts by rotation of said rotor to thereby cause the explosion of said shell charge.

- l GEORGE F. ARCHER. 

